“Beyond Our Feelings”
What They Say:
Following the events of the game, the orphan heroine Hinako Nakayama suddenly reunites with her twin brother Hikaru who asks her to take his place at Shishiku Academy, a private boys school infamous for its rough-and-tumble student body. Hikaru being the child of a powerful Yakuza family, the Onigashima, he is obligated to become the leader of Shishiku Academy. Hinako will have to hide her identity and fight to control the school. How will Hinako deal with a school full of handsome boys who let their fists do the talking rather than talk about their feelings?
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The back half of Kenka Bancho Otome has admittedly lost me a bit in terms of interest as it went into the idol territory for a bit and felt more undefined than it did during the earlier episodes. While some quiet material is welcome to get to know the characters better we didn’t really get that and in the end the show has just lost a good bit of its energy and enthusiasm. It also didn’t help with the whole brother storyline and all that just felt like it was taking the show in an unnecessary direction at this stage. THe flashback at least gave us a little time to see a younger Hinako, but it’s all done through the window of her being unable to deal with the bullying she was getting and how her brother stepped up to protect her.
Kira’s attempt at intimidation is pretty basic here as he works to get rid of Hinako from the school for his own purposes. It’s nicely animated with a rooftop at sunset scene with the two guys flanking her so it hits all the traditional notes in the right way. Her defiance is definitely nicely done though considering what she’s been through so far as it does feel earned on several levels. We do at least get a decent fight sequence here, though it shifts away from it and it’s far too brief for my tastes, but the power of these brief sequences is still the big allure with this show for me. Seeing Hikaru hold her ground is really nicely done and then making some strong moves reinforces her position and that she’s not holding back in all of this, which for Kira reinforces his belief in who she is as part of the charade that’s going on.
In Summary:
This episode does a decent job of settling Hinako’s position as Hikaru for the moment and setting things in an interesting position when it comes to her dynamic with Kira. The knowledge is there but he’s ready to play along for the moment as she’s certainly earned it in his view, though she earned it all on her own without needing his acknowledgment of it. The fight sequence is one of the better parts here but they continue to serve these up in poor and frustrating ways considering how good they can be. It just makes me want a solid fighting series with female characters that doesn’t revolve around jiggle,skimpy costumes, or overdone Baki-like physiques. It can be done and it can be a whole lot of fun and interesting without all sorts of goofy baggage.
Grade: B
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
